Guest Suite Taking Farish, Howard on Classic Ride

No working relationship endures for more than three decades without some deep-rooted commonalities keeping its core intact.

When it comes to their collective mindset regarding the first leg of the Triple Crown, trainer Neil Howard and longtime client William S. Farish serve as a reminder that a patient philosophy should in no way be confused with a dispassionate approach.

Just because his is not a barn that considers it a setback if his charges don't register on the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1) radar each season, doesn't mean Howard has anything but the highest regard for the defining 1 1/4-mile test. And while Farish's Lane's End Farm has crafted some of the most influential bloodlines in recent decades with regards to the American classics, the patriarch of one of racing's storied operations recognizes that a Derby-or-bust mentality would accomplish little more than fostering ongoing angst.

While others wear their first-Saturday-in-May aspirations on their sleeve, Farish and Howard only engage in the chase if one of their own takes them there on their own accord. Since it's not a regular occurrence, there is a special tinge to the journey the times they do embark.

Five starts into his career, Guest Suite is threatening to take his connections down the path of most resistance with the grandest of rewards. With his season-opening victory in the Jan. 21 Lecomte Stakes (G3) at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots, the gelded son of Quality Road   could invite widespread recognition as a leading contender on the Kentucky Derby trail should he pull off another such triumph in the Feb. 25 $400,000 Risen Star Stakes (G2).

NOVAK: Guest Suite Steps Up in Lecomte

It has been a minute since both Farish and Howard—who has trained for Lane's End since 1984—have shared the experience of having a 3-year-old runner with proven credentials and realistic hopes of more to come. Not since he led over Farish's Parade Ground for a sixth-place effort in the 1998 Kentucky Derby has Howard had a starter in the opening leg of the Triple Crown. Though Farish co-bred 1999 Kentucky Derby hero Charismatic— and can see the presence of Lane's End sires in the bloodlines of no less than eight Derby winners since 1998—he has yet to win the classic himself as an owner.

"Only one horse out of that big field wins the Derby and it's a hard thing to get to," said Farish, who owns and bred Guest Suite in partnership with Lora Jean Kilroy. "You invariably take an awful lot out of a horse, so we've had much more success with 4-year-olds or late 3-year-olds as we move along. But (a Kentucky Derby win)—it would be a fabulous thing. It's one of the milestones that we haven't had.

"We're looking forward to it, but no one really knows comparison wise how these 3-year-olds match up, because we're all scattered all over the country right now. But (Guest Suite) is coming up to the race well and we hope he puts in a good effort. Needless to say, we're cautiously very optimistic."

Happy as he is to reflect on the greatness of such former charges as 2003 Horse of the Year and current Lane's End stallion Mineshaft  , Howard is famously reluctant to effuse too much about proteges others may want to talk up in the moment. In his three victories Guest Suite has loosened his conditioner up a tad with outings that are flat obvious in terms of the positive adjectives they spark.

After breaking his maiden at second asking going 1 1/16 miles at Keeneland, Guest Suite acquitted himself admirably in his stakes debut, when he finished third to eventual multiple graded stakes winner McCraken in the Oct. 30 Street Sense Stakes at Churchill Downs. Progression has followed in lockstep since. Guest Suite capped his juvenile season with a 6 1/4-length win Nov. 26 at Churchill and passed his first sophomore test with an off-the-pace 1 1/4-length victory in the Lecomte over a muddy, sealed surface.

"He's shown ability from the very beginning, but it's not until those last two races that we began to think this might be a very special horse," Farish said. "He's shown it all along is the best I can say. He's shown a talent and he's developed—filled out. He's coming to (the Risen Star) mentally and physically the best we could hope for."

Fittingly, Guest Suite's talent is the product of some of Farish's best breeding work and Howard's patient hand.

Out of the Ghostzapper   mare Guest House, Guest Suite descends from the female family that helped put Lane's End on the map with Weekend Surprise—blue hen producer of the legendary A.P. Indy and Howard-trained Preakness Stakes (G1) winner Summer Squall—as his great granddam.

"Neil is a fine trainer, and more importantly he is a good friend," Farish said. "We've had a great relationship for many years and this would be very, very exciting (with Guest Suite) also having Ms. Kilroy as a partner. That family goes all the way back to Weekend Surprise, which was Bill Kilroy's and mine's original family as it worked out. The combination with our two families—we've had a great deal of luck over the years."

The fact he is gelded speaks to how challenging Guest Suite was as a youngster. "He was a very difficult horse early to break," Farish said. Howard, however, is nothing if not adept with reading his horses and allowing them time to get their mind and physical talent on the same page.

As Guest Suite has come into hand with his maturity, he has allowed his connections to toy with the idea that their uncommon loyalty to each other and shared philosophy could result in one of their collaborative efforts taking them to the classic stage they respect too much to take for granted.

"Oh of course, when you're with the people who have supported you through thick and thin over the years, that goes without saying (it is special)," Howard said. "But you know ... you just keep your fingers crossed."

Added Farish, "Whether he wins the Derby or not, he's a very exciting horse."